The Boston Bruins are already starting the 2026-27 season shorthanded. NHL Player Safety announced [https://x.com/NHLPlayerSafety/status/2054307534316437851] on Tuesday that Bruins star defenseman Charlie McAvoy has been suspended for six games due to slashing Buffalo Sabres forward Zach Benson in their first-round series. McAvoy was given an in-person hearing for the play, which meant that it was possible that he would land a suspension longer than five games. Now, that has officially come to fruition with this update, and it is undoubtedly bad news for the Bruins. The Bruins will now start next season without their best defenseman. With how important good starts to the season are, there is no question that it is far less than ideal that McAvoy won't be playing for Boston's first six regular-season games next year. In 69 games during the regular-season for Boston this year, McAvoy scored 11 goals and set new career highs with 50 assists and 61 points. He followed that up by posting two assists and a minus-6 rating in six playoff games for the Bruins this spring.
